Recently, a friend of mine quoted her
mother who grew up in extreme poverty in Portugal: “Wealthy people are always
telling poor people how they CAN’T make money.”

This incredibly sage pearl of wisdom made
me think of how Indian Surrogate mothers have recently been slammed,
persecuted, shamed, pushed down and silenced by people who are trying to swoop
in and save them. But what exactly are these self-proclaimed superheroes trying
to save Indian surrogates from?

Despite the demeaning way media outlets
depict Indian women, surrogates in India are not frail, stupid, illiterate,
incompetent underdogs who need activists to speak on their behalf. Indian
surrogates are strong, wise, compassionate, intelligent and poised. They own
their bodies. They are making decisions pertaining to their own bodies and
lives for the first time in India’s patriarchal history. Surrogacy empowers
Indian women to lead their families out of crisis, poverty and other
challenges. The compensation they receive can finance the education of their
children, start a lucrative business or build a decent home for their own families.

I find it reviling when activists talk
about Indian surrogacy, pronouncing the word money like it is a filthy word they are gagging on. It is easy for
privileged people to trivialize the surrogates’ compensation because to us,
money is easily accessible and even dispensable. But to an Indian surrogate
mother, money can be life changing. We are not talking about mere dollar bills
here. Within the context of Indian surrogacy, money = life. Money = education. Money
= opportunity. Money = home. Money = a child’s future. Money = hope. Money =
freedom. You see, it is not the money itself, but what the money represents. If
activists had their way, they would be denying Indian women the option to have
financial independence.

Surrogacy is a job. It is not prostitution.
It is not a baby market. The job description is simple: to care and nurture another’s
child, giving them a safe place to grow. This kind of work is respectable and
noble. Surrogacy may not be a job most Westerners would choose, or even a
wealthy, Indian government official.

It seems that any job that involves
nurturing is looked down upon. Consider how even teachers and nurses are
treated by society. Surrogacy is a good, honest job that can provide for a
family. Women in poor countries work hard. They always have and they always
will. However, the trend among activists is to try to stop women in poor
countries from performing difficult tasks. If a job is physically challenging,
the job is labelled as exploitive, even
if the work is a blessing to a family.This
is both condescending and destructive. All women have a right to work in
whatever capacity they choose. Never underestimate what an Indian woman can
achieve.

The government of India has recently
proposed a ban on surrogacy. What fascinates me about this proposal is that the
Indian Government is claiming to be concerned about women being exploited. And
yet, their plan to protect women from being exploited is to take away their
basic human rights. The media and the government alike have been quite
proactive in preventing Indian surrogates from speaking. Many surrogates are
eager to talk to the press so they can assure the public they are not being
exploited. The surrogates are not even allowed to speak in the same Supreme
Court trial that is supposedly fighting for them.The questionable (and ironically timed)
memorandum sent by the ICMR to halt Indian Surrogacy before any laws were
passed, was challenged by over 70 surrogates who stormed the gates of the ICMR,
demanding to be heard. Indian surrogates have their own voices and are
perfectly capable of speaking without permission of the government and the
foreign press.

Apparently, the ICMR and various Indian
government officials consider a woman’s ability to create life to be shameful
and dirty. They compare surrogates to breeding cows and prostitutes. Clearly,
they do not understand science if they think there is anything sexual about
being a surrogate. The sexualisation and objectification of surrogates by the
government is what demoralizes surrogates; not the act of having a baby, and
certainly not the act of offering the gift of life to another. Does the ancient
and rich culture of India not consider motherhood to be sacred? Why the double
standard? Thank you, Ovary Police, for
hijacking women’s private parts and dictating if, how and when a woman can have
a baby.

After reading the proposed bill to ban
surrogacy, I don’t know whether I should laugh, cry, scream or vomit. There is nothing in this proposed bill that will
benefit the surrogates in any way. Nearly every item is presumptuous and
theoretical babble as to whether or not a surrogate understands what is going
on. I am utterly amazed at how government officials, (most of whom are men)
seem to be experts on what it feels like to be pregnant, and whether or not a
woman can tolerate pregnancy.

Furthermore, we could all save a lot of valuable
time, effort and stress if surrogates were given the chance to speak for
themselves. This ridiculous court trial, discussing the interests of surrogates,
has been going on since 2012, and the surrogates are still not allowed to
speak! Tell me again about how the Indian government respects women.

I’ve heard the argument that within the
context of poverty, there is no such thing as choices or consent. This notion
is vomitus – it does not liberate women, but rather suggests that a woman’s
socio-economic background determines whether or not she is allowed to make
decisions for herself. Such a philosophy oppresses women and sanctions the act
of privileged people making choices that affect a woman’s fate. Additionally,
Indian surrogacy clinics that operate ethically do not permit extremely
impoverished women to be surrogates, making the poverty argument moot. If the
critics are concerned about poverty, their time would be better spent on taking
action to end extreme poverty, rather than disempowering women from taking
control of their own financial destiny.

In conclusion, if you feel sorry for Indian
surrogate mothers, don’t. Just stop
it. They don’t need to be rescued. They are too busy changing the world for the
better to listen to condescending nonsense from privileged people who
underestimate them. Most people do not fully understand what surrogacy is, and
therefore make gross assumptions about it. I strongly advise those of you who
fit the description above to mind your own business and let Indian women choose
their own destiny.

We are thankful to Dr. Shivani, the entire staff at SCI Healthcare, ISIS Clinic and Eden Hospital for all of their efforts and support in helping us reach this day. You will always have a special place in our hearts. The work that you do is visible around the world thru the families that you have helped to create. To our surrogate … we thank you from the bottom of our heart but for you our heart has no bottom.

Satish, Michele, Aditya and Sahana will be in India for 2 weeks securing U.S. Passports and travel documents for the Rama Twins and spending time with family before traveling back to San Francisco. They will be welcomed home by Michele’s Mom (who will be called Nani, Hindi for maternal grandmother) and Chaya, both of whom are anxiously waiting to meet the new additions to the family.

Aditya and Sahana's astrological sign is Libra. On 10/5 in 1962 Dr. No was released, in 1970 PBS was founded and in 1975 Kate Winslet was born (this is a fun fact for Michele since Titanic is one of her favorite movies!)

Please feel free to contact us if you are wanting further information on IVF & surrogacy options

Saturday, 5 September 2015

We took this picture shortly after we got back to Canada in May. Time has flown by and Max is 5 months old...already! We are so very grateful and over the moon being parents to this wonderful boy. He smiles at everyone and is such a joy to raise. We believe he will do great things with his life and touch everyone's hearts just as he has ours.

A big thank you to the amazing professional team at SCI; helpful, respectful, courteous and just plain on top of their game. And of course a special thank you to Dr. Shivani for making this dream a reality.

With much love,

Jane, André and Max

We wish this family the choicest of blessings for many years to come. If you are wanting more information about surrogacy, please email us at drshivanisachdev@gmail.com

Tuesday, 1 September 2015

There are not enough words to describe the
gratitude we feel for having found SCI! Without the help of our surrogate
mother, Dr. Shivani and the entire staff at SCI our dream would not have come
true. After a long struggle with infertility and several attempts at IVF,
surrogacy seemed like the last option. We were sceptical at first naturally, however from the first moment
we met Dr Shivani our scepticism was
put to rest.

At first meeting she voluntarily took the
time to show us around all the facilities and provided us with any possible
information and statistics available. She was direct and honest and to the
point, a breath of fresh air to deal with. Never have I encountered a whole
entire staff that is so hard working, dedicated and eager to help with anything
they possibly can. They helped make the process from applying for medical visas
straight through to applying for exit visas very straightforward.

Without their support and help we wouldn't now be
blessed with our lovely daughters. To Dr. Shivani, our surrogate and all the staff at
SCI, thank you just isn't enough!

Thursday, 9 July 2015

Congratulations to the many families who have become complete with the assistance of SCI. Here are a few photos of just some of our babies...

SCI are thrilled to announce the birth of the 1001st baby

Babies born in 2010 - 55

Babies born in 2011 - 151

Babies born in 2012 - 286

Babies born in 2013 - 258

Babies born in 2014 - 174

Babies born in 2015 - 77 (to date)

And here are some of our 2015 babies

And some of the SCI team who made this happen ( with an African 2015 family)

And we do not forget the wonderful surrogates, without whom this would not happen. Over the last number of years, we have worked to encourage our surrogates to have their own voice

And after families have left with their much loved babies, we continue to support our surrogates through the Rohini Trust, through education, training, medical care and monetary grants. This is also the place that has the mailbox, where parents from overseas send photos and letters to their surrogates.

Wednesday, 3 June 2015

It’s hard for us to put into words what
this experience has been for us.

Thank you from the bottom of our heart for
everything you have done to help us.

SCI made us completely at ease with your
warmth and professionalism. When we left your office, we were also elated,
confident that we were on the right path.

What you provide is such a special gift to
people. We are enormously grateful.

You have given us back a sense of joy about
becoming a family along with confidence, peace of mind and hope.

Thank you Dr Shivani & SCI Team

Each Member of SCI team were always
incredibly accessible, would receives phone calls or emails very promptly. Each
one in your team from admin to account are absolutely awesome, truly
professional, informative, supportive and an extremely caring person.

The entire journey with SCI team was just
perfect and no words could adequately express our gratitude to everyone on the
team.

Special thanks to Dr Shivani, Nabanita,
Lalit, Jyoti, Arpana.

If you would like to find out more about surrogacy, please email us at: drshivanisachdev@gmail.com

Saturday, 18 April 2015

Our journey to complete our family
was a long and painful one, after almost 10 years of heartache we were blessed
with parenthood on January 24th, 2015. Words are hard to express the immense
joy and gratitude we have experienced with the birth of our TWINS, blessed with
a girl and a boy! These are the most precious gifts of our lives! :)

We are forever indebted to our
surrogate and the wonderful team at SCI for turning our dreams into reality.
Throughout this process, we were very

impressed with the level and promptness
of service provided by the team at SCI. It's the amazing team that makes this
experience for intended parents like us as stressful as possible. Our surrogate
and the team at SCI in India will always have a special place in our hearts and
in the lives of our twins "Aanya" & "Aansh"!

Thank you from the core of our
heart!

Tina, Kash, Aanya & Aansh

Update: This is us, growing so fast in 2 months! We always remember you all and can't express our gratitude for all your efforts for our existence in this world! Hope you all will recognize both of us! Please convey regards to our surrogate A.

If you would like to find out more about surrogacy, please email us at drshivanisachdev@gmail.com

Thursday, 9 April 2015

Hello, we are a family of Brazil.
We are very happy that we found Dr. Shivani and SCI in India.
With this friendship, we can realize our dream of being parents and build a
happy family.

We want to say that we found here in India excellent doctors and experts in
human reproduction. We also find here in India a beautiful country with
excellent infrastructure and a wonderful, warm people that we will be eternally
grateful,

Thank you all.

If you would like to find out more about surrogacy, please email us at drshivanisachdev@gmail.com

Thursday, 2 April 2015

We are so thankful to your team that help us to add a new color in our life. Words are not enough to show our gratitude towards you team but still try to jot few lines.

Few Words for SCI Team

Words really cannot express our gratitude to Dr. Shivani/SCI and her support team. We were almost ready to give up on our dream of building a family and then you came into our life and helped make our dream a reality.

You cannot believe how many times we thanked our good fortune that we heard about SCI. The journey was long but shorter than we expected, and we felt supported every step. The birth of our baby boy was one of the most important moments of our life. There is nothing that can be compared to it, and without it, our lives would not be complete.

As we write this our adorable baby boy is sleeping next to us and we are so grateful to SCI and the Surrogacy team for their expertise and support in handling our surrogacy.

From the initial call to the day our baby boy was born we couldn't have asked for a better experience.

Thank you Dr. Shivani & SCI Team

Few Words for Dr Shivani

We were really quite anxious about the whole process but our first meeting with Dr. Shivani completely put us to rest. We found her not only extremely professional, but sympathetic and understanding as well.

She is the one who lighted the flame of new hope and made us feel secure and comfortable with her professional and detailed explanation about the whole process of surrogacy and commitment to making us happy and feel comfortable

She is sensitive to all the emotions involved and makes everyone feel valued.

Hats off to you Dr Shivani

Few Words for SCI Staff

Each member of SCI team were always incredibly accessible, would return phone calls or emails very promptly. Each one in their team from admin to account are absolutely awesome, truly professional, informative, supportive, and an extremely caring person.

The entire journey with SCI Team was just perfect, and no words could adequately express our gratitude to everyone on the team

Now our first baby boy is in our arms and our dreams have come true! We are looking forward to our next journey with SCI in the very near future!

We are changed forever in a beautiful way!

Few Words for FCI Team

FCI team are absolutely awesome, truly professional, supportive, and an extremely caring team. Beside their professional aspect they are serving many families to make their better future.

Their commitment to the people they work with, the support they give their surrogates and their family, and their attention to the business side of things is something we do not take for granted and appreciate all the same.

For this and many other reasons, I can highly recommend SCI/FCI team to all.

Tuesday, 17 March 2015

Nothing gives us greater joy when a family trusts us again with a precious sibling for first SCI baby.

We are forever grateful our family is now complete.

We want to say a massive big thankyou to Dr Shivani and her team, you all do a wonderful job you are all very helpful and it makes this step in our journey a little more easier.

After a long hard journey to start our family, Dr Shivani and her team have filled our hearts with love and joy with not just one baby but 2 our gorgeous baby,

Hanna Sophia she is now 2 and half and is very smart and gorgeous, also our newest addition to the family

Tabitha Katie who I am sure will follow in her big sisters footsteps.

We would like to say a massive huge big THANKYOU to our surrogate B you will be forever in our hearts and lives without you Tabitha would not be possible, you did an amazing job and she is in perfect health and for this we thankyou so very much.

Big thanks from Australia

Memories and friends we will treasure for ever

lots of love from Ann, Nick, Hanna & Tabitha

If you would like to find out more about surrogacy, please email us at: drshivnainsachdev@gmail.com

Tuesday, 10 March 2015

We haven’t got enough words to thank you. We are so thrilled to have created our family with the arrival of our TWINS; we are blessed with a girl and a boy on January 2, 2015. Both of them are so adorable!!! What a great way to start our year 2015 with the precious TWINS. We are forever thankful to Dr. Shivani, our surrogate and the wonderful SCI team for making our dream a reality.

It has been a month since we are back in the US with the TWINS. With the assistance and professionalism from SCI team, the process was easy and less stressful to bring our TWINS home soon.

We will be forever grateful!! We are proud to be a part of the SCI family!!

With lots of love,

Bhairavi, Shailesh, Aryana & Aarin

If you would like to find out more about surrogacy, please email us: drshivanisachdev@gmail.com

Tuesday, 3 February 2015

Greetings Dr. Shivani and SCI Team!It is so hard for us to believe that Asher is one year old today! It seems like just yesterday we were in New Delhi awaiting the birth of our beautiful baby. Because of the hard work of Dr. Shivani, her team, and our dear surrogate, Shanti, our most precious gift was delivered to us! Words can never express our deepest gratitude for all of you who made our dream come true of becoming fathers! We are so very blessed to have Asher, who each day fills our hearts with more love and joy than we ever imagined was possible. We are also so fortunate to know all of you. We will always be thankful for all you have done for us! Thank you thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

As we celebrate Asher's first birthday, we hope that all of you enjoy the cakes we have sent as a small token of our gratitude, and help us to celebrate Asher's 1st birthday! It's so wonderful to know that he is being celebrated and thought of on this special day in the place that he was born!

We've also attached a few pictures of Asher in this email.

We wish you all the greatest of blessings! Thank you so much for everything!

-Tim, Nathan, and Asher

If you would like to find out more about surrogacy, please email us at drshivanisachdev@gmail.com

Thursday, 15 January 2015

Dear Dr Shivani and SCI team,We are so very proud to finally have this beautiful baby boy in our lives. Born on Christmas Day...such a special baby to our whole family he is just beautiful, healthy and perfect in every way!Thank you Dr Shivani for staying positive and encouraging us to continue trying for our dream. We are so glad we listened to you and never gave up. Look what we have now!The journey to parenthood has taken us through many rough times and failures. We are everyday Australians and still can't believe we had the courage and the strength to keep trying for our dream after so long.This clinic and our surrogate mother have changed our lives forever and we cannot express how eternally grateful we are for what you have done for us.We will always hold India close to our heart, Peter, Kylie and VijayWe wish this family the choicest of blessings. If you would like to find out more about surrogacy in India, please email us at drshivanisachdev@gmail.com

Saturday, 10 January 2015

It is always a privilege when families' get in touch with us, out of the blue, to share what has happened to their families after they left us in New Delhi. .Steven's family story was first shared with you here: http://drshivanisachdevgourdelhi.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/from-canada-dayenu-it-would-have-been.htmland here they are now:

We wish this family the choicest of blessings and thank Steven and his family for sharing their story.

If you would like to find out more about surrogacy with us, please email us at drshivanisachdev@gmail.com